These are the top 12 Node.js frameworks on GitHub️. I have no doubt that these numbers are going to increase but at least you will be able to see how much they have grown on GitHub.
Most recent update: Friday 20 May 2022
1 - express.js 57k ⭐️
Express.js is the most popular Node.js backend framework. It is mainly used for building backend applications and REST API's. When a JavaScript developer chooses to learn a backend framework. Express.js is usually the first choice for beginners.
2 - socket.io 55.8k ⭐️
Socket.io is a JavaScript library that excels in the area of real-time bidirectional even-based communications. In a nutshell this means that it's the ideal framework to use if you are planning on developing an application that has messaging functionality.
3 - nest.js 47k ⭐️
Nest.js is a powerful framework for building scalable backend applications. It has full support for TypeScript out of the box. The architecture is clear and very similar to Angular.js and there is plenty of documentation for setting up various projects.
4 - meteor.js 42.9k ⭐️
Meteor.js is a versatile framework which gives you the power to develop across multiple environments using JavaScript. Servers, web browsers and mobile devices are all fully supported. This makes rapid prototyping very quick.
5 - koa.js 32.7k ⭐️
Koa.js is a web framework which was designed by the team who created Express.js. It is designed to be smaller and more robust because it uses asynchronous functions so you can avoid callback hell while also increases your error handling.
6 - fastify.js 23.1k ⭐️
Fastify.js like the name implies is a web framework which the creators say provides the best and one of the fastest developer experiences due to its good optimisations. It has a powerful plugin architecture and gets its inspiration from Hapi and Express.
7 - sails.js 22.2k ⭐️
Sails.js uses the model-view-controller methodology for developing Node.js applications. The framework is used a lot for designing and developing custom enterprise level Node.js applications and API's.
8 - feathers.js 14k ⭐️
Feather.js is another real time application that can be used for developing REST API's. It is lightweight and can be used with either JavaScript or TypeScript. The framework works with any frontend JavaScript framework which includes iOS and Android as well.
9 - hapi.js 13.8k ⭐️
Hapi.js is a Node.js framework which is very good at building scalable and powerful applications. It is most often used when building programming interface servers in addition to proxy applications and websites.
10 - adonis.js 12.5k ⭐
Adonis.js shares many similarities with the PHP framework Laravel. It follows the model-view-controller structure and has very well written documentation. The framework is great for developing applications and has everything you need for building web apps and API's.
11 - keystone.js 6.3k ⭐️
Keystone.js gives you the ability to build faster and more scalable apps compared to other Node.js frameworks. This is because it is powered by GraphQL so it is quite easy to setup a schema. There is no boilerplate or bootstrapping just a flexible bespoke backend.
12 - derby.js 4.7k ⭐️
Derby.js is a model-view-controller framework that is good for writing real time, social applications that can work on the backend and in the frontend. Applications build with Derby.js are fast because they use a powerful data synchronisation engine called Racer.